Henle first described the epithelia of the skin and intestines, and defined the structure and function of columnar and ciliated epithelium. He applied the term “epithelium” to all mucous membranes in the body. Modern knowledge of the epithelial tissues starts with Henle. English translation and commentary in L.J. Rather, P. Rather, & J.B. Frerichs, Johannes Müller and the nineteenth century origins of tumor cell theory, Canton, Mass.: Science History Publications, 1986.

Henle broadened the scope of his study of epithelium (No. 539) to include the covering layers of the true body cavities.

Bassi’s work on the muscardine disease of silkworms (see No. 2532), with its prophecy of the discovery of microbes as the causal agents of other diseases, inspired Henle to write this famous essay on miasms and contagions. He laid down postulates on the aetiological relation of microbes to disease which became fundamentals of bacteriology and which did much to check the reckless speculation which had arisen regarding micro-organisms. Koch later developed these postulates (see Nos. 2331, 2332, 2536, and 5167). Digital facsimile from the Internet Archive at this link.

English translation in Bull. Hist. Med., 1936, 6, 911-83.

Many of the histological discoveries of Henle are described in the above. He classified tissues histologically. In the section on Gefässnerven (pp. 510, 690) Henle demonstrated the presence of smooth muscle in the endothelial coat of small arteries. Digital facsimile from the Hathi Trust at this link.

Considered by many authorities to be the greatest of the 19th-century systems of anatomy. Many structures are named after Henle, including the looped portion of the uriniferous tubules of the kidney, the layer of cells in the root sheath of a hair, and the ampulla of the uterine tube.